Probably because it'd be super expensive, target a very small market, and bring no profit.
Don't think you'll see HDMI on a classic ThinkPad either, nor the space to cram in a CF reader. 3 lbs sounds like you'd be going around with twenty minutes of battery life too.

force wrote:I feel it's a bit unfortunate that there will never be a 12" x301 class Thinkpad. That would be my ideal notebook but it would be cannibalizing the x200 series, unless, of course, it was the next one.

All I can wait for is to see what Lenovo does with the LV Sandy Bridge.

Wishing for x301 or x302 is asking for a non-existent model. One way this may happen may be through a small volume, premium notebook builder within Lenovo/Thinkpad like Alienware does for gamers for Dell.

It's unlikely that Lenovo will go for such an in-house, premium notebook builder even if there are enough diehard thinkpadders willing to fork over $1500 or more for a decently specced notebook.

Is Gorrila Glass necessary? I understand its usefulness on Touch- or Pen-input device... but why on a keyboard+mouse/trackpoint Thinkpad? Non-tablet Thinkpads have been fine without a reinforced glass on top of the monitor. I'd much rather have a matte display than the high gloss protective glass on my display...

- bad battery life
- much worse display, not reflective but horrible
- much lighter
- the same large bezel

That's why the x1 is the right successor to the x300.

The X300/301 had an internal optical drive and a more reasonable resolution, 1440x900. The X1 is a downgrade from the X30*.

It seems to me that these days, most laptop manufacturers rely mainly on needless gimmicks to market their products like thinness (which is far less important than weight or footprint size IMO) or Gorrila glass or 3D. Why not focus more on real improvements, like screens with higher quality and resolution, longer battery life, smaller footprint (by reducing bezel size), lighter weight, etc. I understand that some users do want or even need Gorrila glass or 3D; I am just saying these manufacturers shouldn't neglect the "real improvements" listed above.

It's still just... not a "business-class" notebook as far as ThinkPads go.

The things that break it for me are:

-Not metal hinges (as far as I can tell)
Granted, the old 600E that I've got doesn't have metal hinges either but it's still reassuring to see them there.

-Glossy screen finish
So you're not using it outdoors. It might be hard to destroy but who jams their fingers into the screen in the first place?

-Keyboard choice
Yes, it's backlit, but it's a deserted Island keyboard. Also, why's the Print Screen button on the bottom?
(ThinkLight's still more useful since it lights up the area surrounding the keyboard too- and not being able to see the keys isn't all that much of an issue if you're touch typing, and if you need to see a key you just move that finger.)

-No DVD drive
Is it really that hard? The X30x series had this, and if they offered the X302/320 I'd forgo the X220 for solely that reason.

It's not a big deal to me that they're not offering IPS but it is, IMHO, something that should be offered in a laptop of this price.

But what kills it for me is the existence of the T420s. That's almost as thin and almost as light. It's got a better screen, a real keyboard, and a DVD drive (replaceable for more battery life). It's also cheaper for the same amount of power and the same price gets you more power (an NVS 4200M or an SSD will budget in to that). It will also last you until the technology inside is useless (unlike the X1 which has a non-replaceable battery).

I just convinced myself that the changes to the new *20 series were for the better, but with each release they all seem less ThinkPad-ish. But the X1, this seems like someone messed up big time and labelled an ideapad as a ThinkPad.

Q-Ball wrote:(ThinkLight's still more useful since it lights up the area surrounding the keyboard too-

Exactly! Many people's favorite Thinkpad feature is the Trackpoint, but my favorite is the Thinklight. I touch-type and don't need to see the keys to type, but the Thinklight is useful as a flashlight when I am working in the dark. If Lenovo replaces the Thinklight with backlit keyboards for all Thinkpads, I am 99% sure I will never buy a Thinkpad ever again.

pianowizard wrote:Exactly! Many people's favorite Thinkpad feature is the Trackpoint, but my favorite is the Thinklight. I touch-type and don't need to see the keys to type, but the Thinklight is useful as a flashlight when I am working in the dark. If Lenovo replaces the Thinklight with backlit keyboards for all Thinkpads, I am 99% sure I will never buy a Thinkpad ever again.

Same here. I love to be able to see my fingers as I type, and in a dark room with the screen on low brightness the ThinkLight allows you to read papers and what not. I hope the X1 doesn't start a trend with the rest of the ThinkPad line.

pianowizard wrote:Heavy, low resolution, short battery life. Not interested.

What made the X300/X301 so awesome was that they crammed an optical drive (or an extra battery) into a very small package and kept it in the very low 3lbs range. The X1 is only .2lbs lighter than a T420s which has all those extra things that the X1 is missing. I bet if you removed the optical drive and put in a mSATA SSD it would probably weigh very close to an X1.

I have to say, I am disappointed in Lenovo's decisions surrounding the X1. Instead of making an X30x successor they made an X30x downgrade.